


Orynth High

by noodlecatposts



Category: Throne of Glass Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Teenagers, Awkward Crush, Crushes, High School Crush, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-13
Updated: 2020-06-13
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:35:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24704680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noodlecatposts/pseuds/noodlecatposts
Summary: Failing her English class is how she winds up with a tutor, but Rowan Whitethorn is far more than she bargained for.
Relationships: Aelin Ashryver Galathynius | Celaena Sardothien & Rowan Whitethorn, Aelin Ashryver Galathynius | Celaena Sardothien/Rowan Whitethorn
Comments: 10
Kudos: 60





	1. I'm Not Ticklish

**Author's Note:**

> This is a prompt fic I started on Tumblr. Some chapters will be short and some are long. Feel free to request a prompt @noodlecatposts.

Aelin is failing her Honors Literature Class. 

She’s kind of pissed about it, really. Aelin loves to read, spends days and days in a row reading book after book until she has to do something else. If it was up to her, Aelin would probably spend all of her time reading, but she wouldn’t be reading the books Ms. Phillips is assigning.

Now instead of going on a coffee run with Elide and Manon, Aelin is headed for the library after school lets out. As soon as her parents discovered she was doing so poorly, they insisted that she make arrangements for tutoring. So, that’s what she’s doing.

She scowls as she walks, but inside she’s elated. Aelin hates that she’s failing—hates the class and teacher more—but she doesn’t actually hate the tutoring, especially not the company. Aelin pretends not to notice how her heart stutters at the sight of Rowan Whitethorn seated at their usual table, nose in an oversized textbook. It’s how she finds him every Tuesday, but every Tuesday, it feels like it’s the first time she’s ever seen him.

“There you are!” Rowan’s eyes light up when he spots her. She’s running a little late, having gotten distracted with her friends and gossip. “I thought you were going to stand me up.”

“Never,” Aelin breathes, ducking her head to hide her blush at the earnestness in her voice. 

Aelin wishes she were in a position where she could stand him up, wishes he’d ask her out already. She can tell he’s interested, but Rowan’s shy, too afraid to take that next step. Aelin is breaking through that timidness more and more every day. 

“Let’s see it,” he demands. Aelin glares at him instinctively, crossing her arms over her chest and jutting out her chin. Rowan just grins, holding one hand out expectantly.

Rowan wiggles his fingers. “That bad, huh?”

Aelin remains silent; she had a quiz today that she doesn’t want to talk about. They enter a staring contest. Rowan’s smile only grows, and Aelin trembles with the need to return it. No smile should be able to undo her like this. It’s ridiculous. 

Then something surprising happens. Rowan reaches out for her and pinches her side, and Aelin is caught so off-guard that she’s unable to bite back the inexplicable squeal of laughter that escapes her. The sound echoes in the quiet library and someone shushes them from afar.

Rowan’s eyes are wide with surprise, and his cheeks are a little pink, but his smile turns sharp—playful. “You’re ticklish.”

“I am not,” she hisses. Heat creeps along her skin, covering every inch of her body in a flush. There’s no way Rowan can miss it.

“Oh?” He brushes his fingers against her side again; Aelin jerks away from him violently, and Rowan bites his lip to muffle his own laugh. Then the bastard does it again. This time, Aelin breaks into a peal of laughter; Rowan laughs softly, too, continuing to tickle her much to her horror and his amusement. 

He continues to attack her until the librarian comes by, chastising them with gentle words and no small amount of fondness. They’re library rats and on excellent terms with the woman.

The silence stretches between them afterward, and Aelin hides her face to keep from looking at Rowan. She can feel his eyes on her, and soon, Aelin gives in, meeting his gaze with uncharacteristic shyness.

Rowan smiles. “Wow, I guess you’re totally not ticklish at all,” he remarks, deadpan.

Aelin bites her lip to keep from bursting into laughter. Somehow she responds with a straight face, “That’s what I told you, Buzzard. I’m not ticklish.”

*


	2. You Smell Nice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, but I live for awkward-teenage Aelin.

“Rowan!” Aelin screams when she sees Rowan, rushing towards him.

Her tutor is in the courtyard, hanging out with friends that Aelin doesn’t know. Rowan is two years ahead of Aelin, a senior and a million times more popular than smart-mouthed and prone to trouble Aelin. 

Rowan looks up at the sight of his name; when he sees Aelin running towards him, he doesn’t hide the slight curve of his lips. “Hey, Aelin. What’s the rush—”

Aelin shoves her last term paper in his face, practically mashing the paper into his nose. Rowan goes quiet, much like the rest of the conversation around them. His brow is furrowed as he takes the paper from Aelin and examines it, but at the sight of the 98 stamped across the top, Rowan’s face lights up.

“You got an A?” Rowan beams and Aelin’s heart forgets to beat.

“I got AN A!” She screams, overwhelmed by the grade. She’s never gotten an A in Ms. Phillip’s class; this is all thanks to Rowan.

Aelin’s excitement is infectious; Rowan laughs and holds out his arms in invitation. She doesn’t think twice as she jumps into his arms, still squealing with delight. They must make quite the shock, but that’s okay. Aelin doesn’t mind causing a scene.

“I knew you could do it,” Rowan tells her as they hug, and Aelin soaks it up longer than she probably should have. 

“You smell really nice.” Horror seizes Aelin as she realizes what she just said. Her blood turns cold, and she pulls away from Rowan, ducking her head to hide her deep blush. 

“What?” He asks, trying to meet her eye.

“N-nothing!” She says, perhaps a little too loud. Aelin avoids looking at Rowan or any of the people around them. “Uh—gotta go!”

“Aelin?” Rowan asks as Aelin takes off running. She thinks if she stays in his presence any longer, she’ll die.

*


	3. How Are We Getting Home?

“Lysandra Ennar,” Aelin hisses, getting out of the passenger seat of the car and shooting her best friend a glare. “You said this was just going to be our friends.”

The sprawling lawn of Fenrys and Connall’s house is packed with their peers, and it looks as if the large house at the end of the drive is just as full of students from Orynth High School. The whole school is at this party. Lysandra is such a liar.

“These people _are_ our friends,” Lysandra says, shrugging a delicate shoulder indifferently. Aelin glares after her friend as the brunette slinks into the crowd.

“You sure have a lot of friends,” she accuses. Aelin is feeling very tricked.

“Well, one of us has too.” Lysandra laughs at Aelin’s expression as she leads her into the fray. “Try and have some fun, Ae.”

The sight of all of the students makes Aelin’s heart race. A lot of the people here are seniors; most of them Aelin doesn’t even really know. All she can think about is the fact that some of these people are Rowan’s friends. Is he here?

Aelin may or may not have skipped her last tutoring session with Rowan, strategically missing their last meeting before the school closed for the holiday. She was too embarrassed by their last encounter to spend two hours alone with Rowan in the library. Just the thought of doing so turned Aelin into a tomato.

She can’t believe she was so stupid. _You smell nice_ , she’d said. What the hell was that?

“Oh, look!” Lysandra says, green eyes shining with excitement. “Your tutor is here!”

Of course, he’s at the party, Aelin thinks, groaning internally. Aelin is seconds away from turning around and fleeing the scene. Hell, she’ll walk home if she has to if it means she gets to keep avoiding him, but Rowan meets her eye before she can escape.

Aelin’s tutor sends that little smile of his her way, and the girl barely manages to keep on her feet as the ground disappears out from under her. Shit. Aelin has no idea when it all got this bad. When did she develop this massive crush on _Rowan Whitethorn_?

After all, the guy is such a nerd. A total asshole, too. But, he’s super fucking hot.

Damn, she likes him so much.

“Aelin Galathynis!” A voice shouts her name. Aelin finally breaks eye contact with Rowan to find Elide Lochan smiling at her from her perch atop the dining room table. Her legs swing back and forth as she smiles with mischief.

“Get your ass over here!” Elide calls impatiently. Lysandra laughs, giving Aelin a nudge before disappearing into the crowd.

Aelin spares Rowan one more look before she weaves through the crowd towards where Elide holds court with the twins and Manon. Rowan tips his head in her direction in acknowledgment and sends her another smile that makes her heart flip. Aelin nearly trips over her own feet on the way to join Elide and her friends.

The brunette grins at her. “See something you like, Ae?”

Aelin blushes despite herself, but she grits her teeth. She’s not going to let them tease her, or she’ll spend the whole night being tortured. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Elide doesn’t back down, smirking. “So, you’re saying you don’t know anything about why Rowan Whitethorn can’t stop looking over here?”

“What?” Aelin yelps, looking over her shoulder. Though, Rowan’s gaze is studying his cup and not her. In fact, he’s looking nowhere in her direction anymore, which only disappoints Aelin.

The blonde glares. “That was _mean_.”

Elide bursts in laughter, hiding her smile behind her drink. Aelin stares her down for a little while longer before snatching away the brunette’s cup and finishing it off a little too quickly. Elide’s eyes go wide as saucers, but Aelin’s not worried about her judgment. All she knows is that she needs a drink if she’s going to make it through this evening.

The party proceeds without much note, Aelin drinks with her friends, and they manage to avoid being wrapped into any of the typical drama or fights that come with a high school party. All in all, it turns out to be a pretty good night.

Lysandra was right to force Aelin out for the evening. Otherwise, Aelin would’ve spent the evening drown in her misery at home. This was a much better way to spend her time.

As the party begins to dwindle, Elide asks if Aelin needs a ride home. It’s gotten rather late, even for a party. Aelin knows her parents will be looking for her soon.

“Nah, Lys and I rode together.” Aelin furrows her brows when she realizes how long it’s been since she saw Lysandra. “Though I don’t know where she is.”

Manon’s eyes sparkle. “I saw her sneaking away with that cousin of yours earlier. They were headed outside to say goodbye, I think.”

“Ugh,” Aelin groans. “Gross.”

*

Aelin does, in fact, find her best friend outside, sitting on the trunk of the car, but her cousin is nowhere to be found. The blonde is thankful for that; she’s in no mood to watch her best friend and cousin make out.

As she approaches, Lysandra smiles at her like the cat who caught the canary. Aelin just knows she doesn’t want any of the details.

“ _Please,_ ” she interrupts Lysandra before she can speak. “ _Please,_ don’t share.”

“Fine,” Lysandra shrugs, hopping off the car. “Suit yourself. Let’s get out of here.”

The girls get into the car; Aelin is more than ready to go home and get into her bed. The alcohol she’s consumed has left her feeling sleepy, the buzz faded away a while ago. It’s time for bed.

But, the girls run into a problem. The car won’t stop.

“Shit,” Aelin swears, watching defeatedly as Lysandra battles with her car. “How are we supposed to get home now?”

Lys frowns, staring at the steering wheel as if it holds all the answers. Her green eyes light up when she sees something, and Lysandra points out the window and back towards the house. “ _You’re_ going to use your womanly charms and ask for a ride home.”

Aelin follows Lysandra’s pointed finger; her body goes cold at the sight of Rowan standing on the front porch, saying goodbye to a few of his friends. She was both devastated and thrilled to be able to avoid him for the night, but it seems that her luck has come to an end.

“No,” Aelin insists. “No way. Let’s just call Aedion.”

Lysandra sighs. “You and I both know that he’s not going to answer. Besides, Rowan is already here! No need to wait on him to get his butt back over here.”

Aelin’s friend raises a brow at her, and the blonde whimpers, sinking down in her seat and covering her face with her hands. “I hate my life.”

Silently, Lysandra reaches over and pets Aelin’s head in quiet sympathy. Her voice is a gentle nudge when she says, “Anyway, he’s coming over. If that matters at all.”

“What?” Aelin screeches, sitting upright in her seat and looking for Rowan. The silver-haired boy is heading right towards them, wearing a curious expression and that smirk Aelin likes so much.

She looks to Lysandra in horror, a silent plea for help. The brunette grins as Rowan heads right for Aelin’s window, leaning over the car and into her space.

Gods, he really does smell good.

“You guys, alright?” Rowan asks, oblivious to Aelin’s inner thoughts—thankfully.

Aelin opens her mouth to speak, but no words come out. Lysandra nearly trembles with her enjoyment of the moment, but she spares Aelin a little bit of mercy and speaks in her stead, “Stupid car won’t start. _Again_.”

“Oh.” Rowan blinks. He keeps glancing between the two of them, waiting for Aelin to speak, but the girl has no idea where her voice has gone. All she can do is just stare at him. “Need a ride?”

“No,” Aelin says because the idea of being trapped in a car with Rowan is a lot to handle. There’s no missing the way his face falls at the rejection. “We’re just going to call my cousin. It’s fine.”

Lysandra pinches Aelin. “My idiot boyfriend probably won’t even answer the phone. We’d love a ride.”

“Um,” Rowan looks between the two of them. He can tell something is going on with the girls, but he can’t figure it out. “Okay, then. Let’s go.”

“He’s even hotter up close,” Lysandra whispers to Aelin as Rowan retreats. “Hot _and_ nerdy—I like your type, Galathynius.”

“I hate you,” Aelin tells her as they head for Rowan’s truck. “I hate you so fucking much.”

*

*


End file.
